Field of the Invention
The field of invention relates to a method for helping a patient eliminate tobacco and nicotine dependency, and more particularly pertains to a new and improved method wherein a patient is injected with a solution of medication, prescribed anticholinergic medications, Medial Forebrain Bundle (MFB) antagonist or agonists and instructed on behavioral therapy which is designed to specifically allow said patient to experience physical and emotional pleasure, so that said patient can quit smoking.
Nicotine, like many other forms of addiction, has both physical and emotional components. The physical side is brought about by nicotine's interference with certain necessary neurotransmitters, specifically "acetylcholine". Nicotine is a congener to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. It competes to occupy the same receptor sites; specifically the muscarinic sites. Through the process of tolerance, there is a marked increase in the levels of acetylcholine and the number of receptor sites may be increased as well. "Muscarinic stimulation of ganglia and the adrenal medulla usually is thought to be modulatory to nicotine stimulation. The actions of acetylcholine and its congeners at muscarinic receptors can be blocked by atropine. When given parenterally, quaternary ammonium derivatives of atropine and scopolamine are, in general, more potent then their parent compounds both in muscarinic receptor and ganglionic blocking activity: they lack Central Nervous System Activity (CNS) because of poor penetration into the brain". Goodmans & Gillmans: The Pharmacological Basis of Therapeutics. 9th Edition
The emotional side of nicotine addiction is brought about neurobiologically. The neurobiological process of nicotine addiction is similar to that of other drugs and involves an area of the brain known as the medial forebrain bundle (MFB). This is the reward system of the brain. The structure of the MFB are the frontal cortex, the nucleus accumbens (NA) and the ventral tegmental area (VTA). Nerve fibers running from the VTA to the NA are known as the mesolimbic dopaminergic pathway. These nerves release dopamine in the NA. Dopamine is a neurotransmitter which excites neurons in the NA generating the drive to repeat the brain reward through eating, drinking and sex. The natural drives: eating, drinking and copulation produce this positive reinforcement (i.e. brain reward) encouraging continuation of that behavior. Smoking and Illicit Drug Use: Mark S. Gold. M.D. Editor
Neurobiological changes are reinforced through years of habitual nicotine abuse. A 1992 article (Cost Effectiveness of Treating Nicotine Dependence) The Mayo Clinic clearly revealed that pharmacotherapies coupled with Behavioral Modification produced efficacy rates in smoking cessation by as much as 47%. Virtually all pharmacological based therapies (i.e. Nicotine Replacement Systems, the patch, gum and antidepressants) include some type of behavioral suggestions as part of their instruction. Since all human behavior is directed by pleasure or pain, a pleasurable cessation period is the preferred modality in replacing MFB stimulation and the maladaptive behavior.